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This is how Oslo cut pedestrian and cyclist deaths to zero
In an effort to make the city center free of cars, over the last few years, Norway’s capital of Oslo has been busy replacing nearly all street-side parking spots with bike lanes and sidewalks. The result? Last year, the city recorded zero pedestrian or cyclist deaths, bringing the capital in line Read More...
20 years on, the world’s biggest trash dump is now a green oasis
In its heyday, the Fresh Kills trash dump on Staten Island was one of the world’s great eyesores. Imagine New York’s Central Park with trash mounds 20 stories high. Now imagine that times three. That’s how bad it was. By the late 1970s, an estimated 28,000 tons of trash arrived at Fresh Read More...
How car-free streets unite communities: A firsthand account from Oakland
The Optimist Daily has never been shy to support urban planning that favors pedestrians over motorists. Not only does it make the streets safer, but it can also clean up the air in a city dramatically. But beyond all this, perhaps the biggest benefit of clearing the streets of cars is that it turns Read More...
Nivea is testing a refill station in Germany that aims to reduce plastic waste
One of the most effective ways to close the tap on plastic pollution is to reduce the material’s production in the first place. Reusable packaging plays a key role here since it allows for a product to be consumed over and over again without the need for unnecessary single-use plastic. To Read More...
Eco-friendly fungus leather looks and feels like the real thing
From processing plastic waste to sequestering carbon to protecting astronauts from cosmic radiation, fungi have the incredible potential to benefit a wide range of industries. According to a recent study, this impressive living organism also holds the potential to help scientists develop a more Read More...
These colorful dome houses were built to help empower the local community
Reimagining the way we give rise to our built environment is key to reducing its heavy environmental footprint. A compelling architectural project in Iran shines light on how this can be achieved by engaging local communities as well as using simple materials that have been around for Read More...
Airbus unveils three hydrogen-powered zero-emission airplanes
As the body of evidence grows about the heavy environmental footprint of flying, airplane manufacturers have started to ramp up their efforts to decarbonize the industry. In a bid to showcase its plans for zero-emissions air travel, Airbus has recently unveiled three hydrogen-powered aircraft Read More...
LEGO has designed braille bricks for blind students
In April of 2019, we shared a story about LEGO and its plans to launch a line of their famous bricks to introduce blind people to the braille alphabet. Now we’re happy to share those bricks are ready to be distributed. The LEGO Foundation molded the bricks with studs that correspond to numbers Read More...
December 23, 2020
As we close out our 2020 year, we're taking a look at a composer and scientist making music from the northern lights and promising new research into a universal flu vaccine. Listen to The Optimist Daily Update with Summers & Kristy - Making Solutions the Read More...
December 23, 2020
As we close out our 2020 year, we're taking a look at a composer and scientist making music from the northern lights and promising new research into a universal flu vaccine. Listen to The Optimist Daily Update with Summers & Kristy - Making Solutions the Read More...